Appeals Court Dismisses Lawsuit Accusing Twitter of Sex Trafficking
Plus: Connecticut may exonerate witches, federal regulators are waging a quiet war on crypto, and more...
Sex Trafficking
5 Years After the Backpage Shutdown, Sex Workers—and Free Speech—Are Still Suffering
As former Backpage execs await their August trial, the shutdown is still worsening the lives it was supposed to improve.
Law Enforcement Beat This Innocent Man to a Pulp. Will the Supreme Court Allow Him To Seek Recourse?
James King is once again asking the high court to rule that two officers should not receive immunity for choking him unconscious and temporarily disfiguring his face.
Sex-Trafficking Suits Against Banks That Serviced Epstein Can Proceed
Plus: American IQs may be shifting, Jack Daniel's lawsuit against dog toy maker hits SCOTUS, and more...
States Try To Reform Prostitution Laws—for Better and Worse
New bills in six states showcase some right and wrong ways to help sex workers, from full decriminalization to ramping up penalties for prostitution customers.
Rape Rates Go Down as Countries Legalize Prostitution, Rise With Sex Work Prohibition
Plus: States move to stop cops from lying to kids, Biden wants to raise Medicare taxes, and more...
Another Bogus 'Sex Trafficking Sting' Led by Homeland Security Agents
Plus: Everyone loves conspiracy theories, against national rent control, and more...
Appeals Court Panel Seems Skeptical That FOSTA Doesn't Violate the First Amendment
The 2018 law criminalizes websites that "promote or facilitate" prostitution. Two of three judges on the panel pushed back against government claims that this doesn't criminalize speech.
To Fight Human Trafficking, Police in Texas Town Endorse Zoning Restrictions on Massage Parlors
City officials in Nederland, Texas, are kicking around the idea of limiting new massage parlors to industrial areas of town.
Reddit Is Not Guilty of Sex Trafficking, Says Court
In a post-FOSTA world, Section 230 still protects websites from lawsuits over criminal sexual conduct by their users.
Underage Girls Arrested in Florida 'Human Trafficking' Sting
Once again, policies billed as helping people coerced into prostitution wind up harming those that cops say they're trying to help.
Retrial of Backpage Execs Wouldn't Be Double Jeopardy, Court Says
Former Backpage executives could now face trial again in 2023, after the government's first attempt resulted in a mistrial.
There's No Way FOSTA Isn't a First Amendment Violation, Says Lawsuit
The case is now on appeal after a lower court said the ban on websites promoting prostitution didn't concern protected speech.
'I Have My Own Life': The Case for Legalizing Sex Work
It would be far easier to prosecute sex trafficking if voluntary sex work were legal.
The Satanic Panic Is Back, and It's Bipartisan
Plus: Criminal sentencing before the Supreme Court, TikTok pushes back against security threat claims, and more...
What We Know About the FBI's Latest National 'Human Trafficking' Sting
Plus: Book ban enthusiasm ensnares Bible, free speech for nutrition advice, and more...
House Passes New Human Trafficking Bill
Here's what's in the $1 billion reauthorization package.
The Sex-Ad Law FOSTA Was a Mistake. Some Lawmakers Want to Fix It.
The SAFE SEX Workers Study Act would look at the impact of FOSTA and the seizure of sites like Backpage and Rentboy.
214 Sex Workers Arrested in Super Bowl 'Human Trafficking' Mission
In addition, 201 "sex buyers" were arrested.
Ohio Mayor Warns That Ice Fishing Will Lead to Prostitution
Plus: Election laws and voter turnout, New York questions Spotify, and more…
Kamala Harris Spreads Misinformation on Human Trafficking
Plus: Texas attacks TikTok, Neil Young's anti-science past, IRS reconsidering face scans, and more...
Maggy Krell Repackages Her Bogus Backpage Prosecution Into a Book
The pimping charges Krell helped bring against Backpage's CEO and founders were twice thrown out of court.
The U.K. Government's Latest Encryption Fearmongering Relies on Child Sex-Trafficking Panics
British police want greater surveillance powers and they’re willing to destroy everybody’s cybersecurity to get them.
'Should Police Arrest Sex Workers for Standing Around?' No, of Course Not.
Plus: Censorship in New York, how zoning laws are creating a housing crisis, and more...
The Collapsing Federal Prostitution Case Against Backpage.com
Federal Judge Susan Brnovich was recently forced to declare a mistrial, which was a bad sign for the prosecution.
Biased Testimony in Backpage Case Triggers Mistrial
Judge said she has concerns that the government crossed the line several times.
Backpage Defense Lawyers Call for Mistrial After 'Inflammatory' Opening Statements
The defendants are not on trial for child sex trafficking, yet prosecutor Reggie Jones wouldn't stop talking about it.
As Twitter Sex Trafficking Case Proceeds, Platforms Face an Impossible Dilemma
A federal judge says an anti-porn group's suit against Twitter can move forward, in a case that could portend a dangerous expansion of how courts define "sex trafficking."
Why OnlyFans Is Double-Crossing Sex Workers
Plus: FTC revives antitrust suit against Facebook, Planned Parenthood pushes back against Montana abortion laws, and more...
Plymouth County Keeps Puritanism Alive With Bogus Sex Trafficking Stings
Five men face "trafficking a person for sexual servitude" charges after meeting an undercover cop at a hotel.
A Federal Cop Devised a Bogus Sex Trafficking Ring and Jailed This Teen for 2 Years. The Cop Can't Be Sued.
The most powerful officers are held to the lowest standard of accountability.
FOSTA's Failure: The 2018 Sex Trafficking Law Has Been Worse Than Useless So Far
The only thing FOSTA has done is chill speech and make catching sex traffickers more difficult.
Barely Legal Strippers Now Fully Illegal in Texas
The penalty for employing 18- to 20-year-olds to work nude, topless, or "in a sexually oriented commercial activity" is now 2 to 20 years in prison.
Texas Deputies Say They Were 'Molested and Traumatized' by Colleagues During Federally Funded Prostitution Stings
Plus: Georgia loses suit over anti-boycotting law, conservatives rally against Biden's IRS plan, and more...
Former Oregon House Speaker Gets Busted by Prostitution Law He Helped Put in Place
Portland police are calling it "human trafficking," but it was just an old-fashioned vice bust.
The Mom Who Was Terrified of Becoming Sex-Trafficked at Target
Spoiler: She was fine.
Backpage Judge Accused of Bias Will Remain on Case
Plus: Effort to decriminalize psychedelics gains traction in California, crony capitalism at its worst, and more...
Matt Gaetz Story Shifts From Child Sex Trafficking to Consorting With Sugar Babies
Plus: Marijuana legalization in New Mexico, Republicans are coming for OnlyFans, and more…
Is Matt Gaetz a Child Sex Trafficker? Here's What the Law Actually Says.
Not all sexual misdeeds are sex trafficking.
Will Feminists Please Stop Calling the Cops?
The women's liberation movement has gotten tied to mass incarceration. It needs to break free.
Sex Trafficking Panic and Victim Blaming Follow Atlanta Massage Parlor Murders
Rhetoric around the shootings risks putting massage workers everywhere in more danger.
Science-Based Policy Means Decriminalizing Sex Work, Say Hundreds of Researchers
Plus: ACLU joins fight for donor privacy, Parler drops lawsuit against Amazon, and more...
Federal Suit Seeks Damages for Men Illegally Recorded at Florida Massage Parlors, Falsely Smeared as Sex Traffickers
Two women still face felony charges, though the cases against all male defendants were dropped.
Kind Stranger Places Roses on Car Windshields, Cops Assume It's a Sex Trafficking Thing
"Was this something heinous or was it something of a lesser nature, was it completely harmless?"
In a Year of Wild Conspiracy Theories, Super Bowl Sex Trafficking Is a Classic
Plus: A reminder that censorship backfires, Wyoming city considers ban on "performance prostitution," and more...
